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Big Foe Powers Into The U.S. Open Semifinals, Setting Up Historic Showdown With Ben Shelton
Updated: Sep 12
The U.S. Open Men's Singles draw has been filled with thrilling moments, and the quarterfinals continued that excitement with two dramatic victories from American stars Francis Tiafoe and Ben Shelton.
For Tiafoe, the road to the final four required one of the most dramatic comebacks of his career. The 11-seeded tennis star rallied from two sets and a break down Tuesday afternoon to defeat Alex Michelsen, 5-7, 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 7-6 (10-6), in a four-hour, 38-minute thriller.
Michelsen appeared to be in control after taking the first two sets and coming within two games of reaching the semifinals. But Tiafoe refused to stay down. He clawed his way back into the match, eventually forcing a decisive fifth-set tiebreak, where he completed the comeback and punched his ticket to the final four for the third time in his career.
The DMV native became the first American since 2005 to reach the U.S. Open Semifinals three times. He previously reached the finals in 2022 and 2024. During his 2024 semifinal run, Tiafoe fell to fellow American Taylor Fritz in five sets after taking a two-sets-to-one lead.
But Tiafoe wasn't the only American who secured a tremendous quarterfinal victory in this year's U.S. Open.
On Wednesday, Ben Shelton produced a career-defining performance of his own, defeating reining U.S. Open Champion, Carlos Alcaraz, in another five-set classic, 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-3, 1-6, 7-6 (7). The explosive battle lasted four hours and 28 minutes and concluded at 3:33 a.m. ET, making it the latest-ever finish in U.S. Open history.
For Shelton, the victory was historic on several fronts. It marked his first career win over a top-three ranked opponent and snapped Alcaraz's 18-match winning streak. Shelton also handed the Spaniard his first Grand Slam defeat against a left-handed player.
Now, after surviving two unforgettable quarterfinal showdowns, Tiafoe and Shelton will face each other with a spot in the U.S. Open final on the line.
The matchup carries plenty of history between the two Americans. Shelton defeated Tiafoe in straight sets in the quarterfinals of Mubadala Citi DC Open Open in July of 2025. Their most recent U.S. Open meeting came in the third round in 2024, when Tiafoe emerged victorious. Shelton had previously defeated Tiafoe at the U.S. Open in 2023. This time, however, the stakes are far greater.
Both Tiafoe and Shelton enter the semifinal hungry for a victory and an opportunity to reach their first Grand Slam final on U.S. soil. With two of the country's most dynamic players on opposite sides of net, the stage is set for another chapter of great competition between the two stars.
And history will be waiting for the winner.
The Tiafoe-Shelton showdown will not only determine which American moves one step closer to the U.S. Open championship, but it will declare who will become the first Black American man to reach the U.S. Open final since Arthur Ashe in 1972. It will also mark the first Black American man to reach any major final since MaliVai Washington in the 1996 Wimbledon.
After two dramatic quarterfinal victories, one thing is clear. American tennis has a star-studded semifinal on the way.
